Events

New Look Pipers Hit Field For First Time

The coaching staff is new. The offense is new. The defense
is new. There are more than two dozen fresh faces on board. Even before the first
practice was even held August 21, it was obvious the 2011 Hamline University football season
will look decidedly different than its predecessors. First-year head coach John
Pate wouldn’t have it any other way. Having been involved with five NCAA
Division 1-AA championship teams at Georgia Southern, Pate is looking forward
to the challenge of running a team in one of the best Division III conferences
in the country, the MIAC.

“We will be more athletic than they were last year,” Pate
said. “I can promise you that. We will be young and inexperienced in some
areas. But we will grow together. If you are athletic and mobile, you can
accomplish a lot of good things on the field. And that is what we are looking
to accomplish in 2011.”

43 players return for Pate and his staff. Among them is a
pair of senior quarterbacks – Adam Meyer (Cold Spring, Minn.) and Connor Sathre
(Waconia, Minn.) Meyer saw the majority of the action last season, throwing for
1583 yards and nine TDs. Sathre appeared in nine games and finished second on
the team in rushing yards. Both will be pushed hard for the starting job by transfer
Michael Van Leer (So-Woodbury, Minn.) Van Leer comes to HU from Winona State
but he is better remembered around the Twin Cities for his slashing running and
passing efforts during a successful prep career at Minneapolis DeLaSalle that
saw him play two years in a row in the MSHSL AAA Prep Bowl title game.

Van Leer may be well suited to Pate’s option-oriented
offensive attack. “Adam and Connor know the league better than I do. That’s
important because they can tell us coaches things that aren’t always apparent
on film,” Pate said. “Michael is a very mobile fellow. I’m excited to see what
he can do.”

Speed is of the essence in the option. Tim Queck
(Sr-Annandale, Minn.)has moved from a
wide receiver position into the backfield and joins junior Blake Cook (Fridley,
Minn.) as the top returnees. First-year players Zach Deitchman (Phoenix,
Ariz.), Corey Touchette (Bainbridge Island, Wash.), Hoyfal Adam (Brooklyn Park,
Minn.) and sophomores Peterson Pierre (Saint Paul, Minn.) and Joey Propati
(Borrego Springs, Calif.) are also in the mix. “It’s going to be an
interesting, open competition,” Pate said.

With Queck, who caught 41 passes last year, likely to move
to the backfield, new faces will likely abound in the receiver positions. Dessalien Similhomme (So-Rochester, Minn.) and
Terry Schwartz (Sr-Saint Paul, Minn.)may get the first looks but there are plenty of first-year players in
the mix. One of the most interesting transitions may occur at tight end where former OL
Andrew Viereck (Sr-Prior Lake, Minn.) will battle with junior Ben Del Greco
(Jr-Sandstone, Minn.). “It’s all about athleticism,” Pate said. “We really
won’t know for sure until we see them in training camp for a few days.”

Fortunately, a veteran offensive line, anchored by center
Jimmy Stone (Sr-Taylors Falls, Minn.) returns. Guards Morgan Scheper
(Sr-Carlton, Ore.) and Joe Morelli (So-Lynnwood, Wash) and tackles Patrick Chilton
(So-Hesperia, Calif.) and Stephen Girard (Jr-Milaca, Minn.) are accustomed to
the MIAC grind. There are a dozen offensive linemen in camp, among them Jamestown
(ND) transfer Erik Benitez (So-Laveen, Ariz.). “This could be the strength of
the team,” said Charlie Hopkins, the team’s offensive line coach. “We need
these guys to be leaders for us.”

As is the case on offense, the Piper defense will feature
some familiar faces in new roles. Cory Olsen (Sr-Elk River, Minn.), who was
third on the Pipers in tackles in 2010 as a linebacker, will get a look at the
end position. “He runs well for a guy who is 6-5, 250,” Pate said.Eric Klaers (Jr- Elk River, Minn.), a second
team All-MIAC pick a year ago, is being
moved to a tackle spot as well. He and senior Nick Wyatt (Jonesboro, GA) offers
size and agility up front. “It looks like we may have some depth there,’ too,”
Pate said. “That’s a definite plus.”

There is movement as well in the linebacking corps. Alex
Ferguson (Jr- Kent, Wash.) had a terrific spring after being moved up from the
secondary where he had eight solo tackles last year. Josh Bain, a fifth year
senior (Grand Meadow, Minn.) and Olajuwan Stiffler (So-Troutdale, Ore.), who
was fourth in tackles in 2010, have the early inside advantage for starting
jobs.

In the secondary, FS John-Michael Vandenberg (So-Bothel,
Wash.), who led the Pipers in tackles, breakups and deflections in 2010,
returns. From there, however, new faces may emerge. Marc McDonald (Jr-Portland,
Ore.) had a solid spring after moving from cornerback to strong safety. This
leaves openings for new corners. “That is the biggest unknown we have going
in,” Pate said. “”This could be the most competitive battle in training camp.”

John Broback, the first team All-MIAC placekicker and second
team punter in 2010, has graduated. As training camp began, Ferguson has the
inside track on punting and placekicking duties. Queck tied for the team lead in kickoff returns last
year.Deitchman and sophomore Peterson
Pierre (Saint Paul, Minn.), who is also a backfield candidate, will get looked
at there as well.

The 2011 schedule is an interesting mix. The Pipers drew the
league’s first week bye, meaning they opened camp a week later than their
conference rivals. The lidlifter is September 10 when HU visits western power
Pacific Lutheran. A year ago, HU nearly topped PLU, falling by a tight 27-20
score. HU then returns home September 17 to face Augsburg, who stuck HU with
the most heart-rendering loss of the 2010 season, a come-from-behind 42-38
affair.

That is one of just four games the Pipers will play at Klas
Field. HU will also face Gustavus Adolphus, Concordia and finish the season
with perennial power St. John’s. They visit Northfield twice to face Carleton
and St. Olaf and also have conference road dates at NCAA Division III
quarterfinalists St. Thomas and Bethel. Their other game is the traditional
non-conference meeting at Macalester.

“I’ve heard a lot of good things about MIAC football,” Pate
said. “And I’m very impressed with what I have seen on film. But I like this
team. We have some very good athletes here who are hungry to win. There will be
a bit of an adjustment period for all of us. But the players are excited to get
going and so am I. We’re all ready to begin a new era here.”